Author's Headnote: Well, glad to see the reviews work. Too bad about the traffic graph though. But I can't fix everything. As for Ruby's shapeshifting, that's a very good suggestion right there... much more humanoid shapes, that's what I was intending to go for anything. And Scythe claws? How interesting...
But all questions relating to the future will be covered soon.
But let's just dive into the chapter.
RWBY: Festival of Blood: Escape from the Undercity
Ruby Rose:
Aura Status: 39%
Thirst: Thirsty from being exposed to UV radiation.
Semblance: Wilted Petal Burst
Grades:
- Grimm Studies: B +
- History: B
- Dust Studies: B
- Combat Practice: B
- Mathematics: C -
- Weapon's Smithing: A -
- Tactics: B -
- Training Missions: C
Team Activity: Done.
Team Relations:
-Weiss Schnee: Back to being non-lazy, atleast she doesn't watch old-shows when she's non-lazy.
-Blake Belladonna: They're dating.
-Yang Xiao Long: Bullet. Dodged.
End of main character status report.
Character Change: Ruby Rose - Blake Belladonna
Mountain Glenn, 8:41 PM, Monday, Underground Ruins
The four of them spent one hours looking for an opening in Mountain Glenn's undercity without falling to their demise. But eventually they did find one through an old White Fang entrance. Although they had to knock out and strip a couple of White Fang mooks for disguises. Although Blake still finds it disturbing to find Weiss wearing a White Fang Uniform. As for their regular outfits... well, don't worry. They're safe. Blake is searching for Ruby and the Dust Capacitor. Yang is following Blake to find Ruby. Weiss is accompanying Violet to sabotage the train.
The Dust capacitor has to be somewhere here. As for Ruby, chances are she is being locked up somewhere heavily guarded. And without her weapon, she'll have to rely on her powers. Although Blake wonders how they manage to capture Ruby in the first place. But she'll just ask Ruby once she's free.
"What was Ruby doing away from the camp anyhow?" Yang whispered to Blake.
"She was likely looking for the base." Blake defended Ruby.
"Well, she clearly found it than. Let's just hope the third year returns Ruby's Scythe."
Blake sees a series of bombs and supplies being loaded on the train. Guess the third year was right about their plan. But Blake went on to focus on finding Ruby for now, maybe she'll know where the dust capacitor is. Well, unless she was unconscious when being dragged in. But no matter... She'll need to rescue Ruby anyway.
No sign of the dust capacitor anywhere in the ruins. And no sign of Ruby. She decides to listen onto a White Fang conversation to find out where exactly she could find one of the things she was looking for.
"We finally caught that pestering nostferatu." The first one said.
"Thank goodness. I didn't expect it to be a little girl though." The second one said.
"Well, it was really easy to bait her though. Got the idea from Perry after he said one of the members from the industrial district got bit. Apparently, like Perry, he survived getting bit."
"I'd like to meet the guy who subdued her."
"From what I've heard, it was just a simple bonk."
"Really? I'd expect the nostferatu to go down with a fight."
"Well, no matter. Torchwick and his mute friend have her in a disconnected train car."
"Whynot just kill her?"
"Roman plans on interrogating her."
"So why the sun lamps?"
"Apparently one of Roman's contacts said the nostferatu has a weakness to UV radiation."
"Well, that's some useful information."
"Maybe we should do our operations at day to avoid that thing."
"Ya, why hasn't anyone ever thought of that?"
Blake has heard enough. She went up toward the White Fang mooks talking. And went to ask them something.
"Excuse me, you two. I just transferred up from the industrial district. Mind telling me where the dust capacitor and the nostferatu is?" Blake asked.
"The nosteratu is being contained in two disconnected train cars to your left. It's across the paladin mechs. As for the dust capacitor... I don't know what you mean." One of the mooks said.
"The one from beacon academy?"
"We didn't steal the dust capacitor from Beacon Academy, what are you talking about?"
"Oh, never mind then. I'll just be elsewhere."
The two of them followed the instructions from the White Fang mook and went toward the train car where the nostferatu is headed towards. Although Yang went to stop her for a moment.
"Blake, why are we trying to save the nostferatu?" Yang whispered.
"Because it'll be useful as a diversion to save Ruby." Blake lied.
"Well, I don't want to be mauled."
"Well than just get out of it's way."
"Whatever, so as long as we save my sister."
After awhile she managed to find the train car where Ruby was held (not known to Yang yet) and than she hears a buzzing from one of the disconnected train cars, it sounds like greenhouse lamps which means...
Oh no. Got to cut the power.
Blake rushed behind the disconnected train car whilst leaving Yang behind and tried to cut the power from the possible Sun lamps. Trying to save Ruby's life. As soon as she cut the wires, she heard a series of banging, and mauling. Which means Ruby is free... but not the Ruby she wants to be free.
Blake rushed towards Yang. And tapping her shoulder.
"We should get out of here." Blake said.
"Why?" Yang asked.
"You're not going to like what ha-" Blake stated, before she hears a loud bang.
The door was crashed open and the ice cream girl she met at the rally had been knocked back but quickly recovered. And than Yang gasped. Although Blake doesn't know why until she looked where she was looking. It was Ruby, well... 'Feral Ruby' as Ruby and Blake dubbed her. Apparently, she's missing her bandana and hood. Blake snuck around the avoid being detected by Feral Ruby to try and retrieve them both. Since chances are that Feral Ruby had removed both articles of cloth from her. And Ruby would not want to have her cloak missing.
Blake quickly grabs it before the feral vampire spots her and ends up giving Ruby a crisis of her own. Not to mention Blake would prefer it if she was mauled to death by her own girlfriend. She quickly and stealthily rushes back to Yang whilst Feral Ruby and that girl end up fighting. She and Yang have to meet up with the rest of the team that's not on a blood-crazed murder spree.
Character Change: Blake Belladonna - Neapolitan
Mountain Glenn, 9:07 PM, Monday, Underground Ruins
Things are getting quite interesting for Neo. It seems the nostferatu has gotten angry. And oh boy is she strong. She knocked Neo back from the containment cell, although skilled as she is, she made a quick recover. Neo smiles as she prepares to fight the nostferatu.
The nostferatu attempts to pounce Neo from the front, with grimm claws and everything. Before the nostferatu landed another hit however, Neo grabbed one of the arms of the nostferatu and swung her across the floor, using the vampire's raw strength against her. The nostferatu quickly gets up and roars at Neo. The nostferatu attempts to strike her claws onto Neo, but she parried every single one of the blows with her weapon. The nostferatu is strong, but not smart. Neo takes advantage of this by sweeping the Nostferatu's legs and knocking her down. Only to be met with her legs being turned into Talons, digging into the floor, which puts Neo out of balance, but she quickly recovers.
Seems as if the nostferatu is smarter than Neo perceives, but it still acts on instinct. The claws and rainshade keep clashing, well until Neo managed to find a vulnerable point of balance and kicks the nostferatu's stomach, and uses hush to stab her heart. The nostferatu is weakened... but it chooses to flee... but Neo feels like she'll be back.
Neo soon found one unread message from torchwick, neo opens up her scroll and reads it. Let's see what Roman had texted to Neo while she was battling with the nostferatu.
'Neo, what's taking you so long? I don't want to die under an abandoned city! Get on the train, we're starting early!' Roman texted.
Guess it looks like the plan is starting earlier than what Cinder had planned. But given current circumstances, it was either a choice of life or death. In all fairness, Neo would choose life too.
Neo went and boarded the train, and assured that the nostferatu wasn't on the trail. She quickly got on the train and saw it running. The train is moving and fast... chances are that vampire wouldn't be catching them now.
The White Fang lieutenant was whispering in Roman's ear. And he does not look too happy.
"What do you mean the cupules were wielded together!?" Roman yelled.
"Sir, I don't know how. But it seems like someone was using fire-dust to melt the metal and attach the cars together. If any of the bombs on the train detonate, everyone on the train will die." The Lieutenant stated.
"And that includes us? Well, abandon the plan and clear the blockage, I need to get out of here alive!"
"But what about our crusade?"
"Would you rather live through it? I didn't sign up for this job just to die to a vampire, nor did I sign up to die underground! So, clear the rocky blockage we're heading towards! It's an order!"
"But sir..."
"Would you rather set off every bomb on this train, along with the train itself, and make everything and everyone on it explode, including yourself?"
"Very well...
Well... things have gotten interesting. It seems the young girl's friends have sabotaged the plan. Didn't expect them to be this bold by wielding the cars together. But that means if Roman were to die, he'd take them out with him. Guess the White Fang was wise about the bombs for once, making all the wires blue. Yet again, any exposed wires would have easily detonated the bomb anyway. The only way for the bomb to be actually disarmed was to remove the dust crystal powering it, but that would require more time than they would have.
But it's such a shame that the nostferatu fled, Neo actually liked fighting her.
Character Change: Neopolitan - Blake Belladonna
Mountain Glenn, 9:16 PM, Monday, Mt. Glenn Train
Blake and Yang just caught up with everyone else. Although Weiss looks confused and wondered something. Feral Ruby could be heard killing White Fang members that are heading toward the train, and Blake is honestly scared for her life.
"Hey, where's Ruby?" Weiss asked.
THUD! STB STB!
"Well, that was Ruby." Yang said out of fear.
"We have to get to the front car." Violet stated.
"Why?" Weiss asked.
"We'll die if we stay here."
"Listen to him, we need to keep moving!" Blake warned.
"Exactly. And me and Blake are going to have a talk after all of this over." Yang said in a mildly frustrated tone.
The four of them rushed ahead, going from car to car, and that's when they heard it... the engine starting to run. The train is now moving, let's hope Weiss and Violet managed to prevent whatever they were planning. Zwei was with Weiss, so the dog is safe, regardless of what Blake thinks of him.
"Did you take care of whatever they were planning?" Blake asked.
"We couldn't disarm the bombs, so we wielded the cars together!" Violet stated.
"What? Why?"
"Simple, if they detonate one of the bombs, they can't decuple it, so that means the entire train would go boom, killing both us and them."
"That's Insane!"
"That's what I said." Weiss commented.
"Well, it was our best option to stop them from bringing grimm here!" Violet stated.
As they were moving more forward, they heard the White Fang walking up on the roof the car. They were likely ordered to confront Ruby. And from the sound of it, chances are they won't be making it back alive. Feral Ruby made a loud sniffing noise from above the current car they were in... and continued to head toward the front of the car. Guess Feral Ruby was not looking for Blake or anyone below her. Which is relieving.
"Was all of that... Ruby?" Weiss asked out of fear.
"Calm down Weiss, do you want her to come back?" Blake scolded.
"What do you mean about that?" Yang interrogated.
"Does it matter, get to the front!" Blake ordered.
Character Change: Blake Belladonna - Feral Ruby
Underground Caves, Unknown time, Metal buildings
The predator is angered. But she had to flee for now. But the scent and negativity... were saved. She will kill her! Like how she was planning to kill her! Trapping her in a room with miniature suns! The prey that come to the predator is savoring. The blood strengthens the Predator. But it's not the girl with the shade stick! No amount of blood will sate her anger for her! She must die!
She stabs onto the metal building that the smell of the shadestick girl comes from. Using her claws to reach the top. Only to be met with prey that's... walking toward the predator? This is a nice change of pace, the prey coming to the predator? They're lining up for their blood to be drained and spread across the cave walls!
The predator
She gallops and runs across the moving building. The predator finds a bunch of metal things. She sees the prey going into them... and making them move. But away from the predator. The predator pounces onto them and attempts to destroy them, to get the prey. She sees four prey and a dog running to head inside the next metal building. But the predator seems uninterested in killing most of them. For now, the metal things she'll destroy. She reshapes her grimm claws into a tendril and jumps and uses the tendril to pull off the thing containing the stored prey. In which she pounces on the prey and draining it dry.
She than reshapes the tendril into a blade, in a shape that she finds most comfortable with to cut the floor in half, making the moving building not containing the shadestick girl go away. She than uses it to slice off one of the legs of the metal thing, it retaliates by shooting exploding objects onto the predator. Which does nothing but cause a rockslide. And than she presumes to cut the arms, and than finally open the metal can to feed off the prey.
Blood good. But still angry. Must kill Shadestick girl!
How did the predator learn what a shadestick is? She does not know, but she does not care. The girl with it must die! She would have gone for the other metal cans, but they seem to ran off. Typical prey. The predator continues heading toward the scent of the shadestick girl. And finally manages to confront her inside the building. She stabs on top of the metal building to get in.
She is confronted by the shadestick girl.
The predator pounces onto the shadestick girl, only to be blocked by the girl's shadestick. The Predator is knocked across the room. The predator roars, it's time that the shadestick girl dies.
Character Change: Feral Ruby - Neapolitan
Mountain Glenn, 9:20 PM, Monday, Train
Neapolitan went toward the ruckus. By herself of course, no need to risk Roman's life to whatever could be out there. She sees four mooks and a dog running past her... wait a second, Neo takes a quick pic. And takes a closer look...
Is that... a Schnee? In a White Fang uniform? Oh, she is going to keep this! Emerald now owes Neo 500 lien. Got to text Roman about there being imposters among the ranks too, She proceeds to do that, but than she heard the ruckus getting louder. And that the said ruckus sounded like it has done some damage.
Oh, it appears the ruckus is coming to Neo... and how interesting... it's the nostferatu.
The nostferatu had attempted to Pounce to Neo, but she countered and the nostferatu was not happy for that.
The nostferatu went at it again but she changed one of her claws into a scythe blade. Unexpected, but Neo prepares to block the attack. The block was successful, but hush was sliced in half. She feels a cut on her face and checks on it... there's blood. Neo smiled at this. It seems she finally find an opponent worth of her time.
Now fighting without a weapon, against something that can shift their entire body into a weapon is quite a challenge but Neo's semblance would tip the balance in her favor. The nostferatu went to slice Neo again, but than she de-materializes and re-appears behind the vampire, and kicks her. Afterward the scythe blade became into a tendril, attempting to grab Neo, but neo grabbed it first and slammed nostferatu across the wall.
As a reflex, the nostferatu covered herself in grimm armor. And took on a beowulf shape. Now she's fighting a beowulf? Well that just makes the fight easier. Well... would be if not for the fact that it's covered in grimm armor, much more than a normal beowulf would be. The armored beowulf pounces at Neo, but she found a weak spot in the armor and went and punched it... cracking it, she than punched it again, although punching it really hurts her fist. So, she founds one of the halves of hushes blades, and throws it at the shattered armored piece, stabbing the grimm.
The grimm than pulled it out and continued to fight, and proceeded to launch another pounce only for Neo to kick it across the next train car.
Character Change: Neapolitan - Blake Belladonna
Mountain Glenn, 9:27 PM, Monday, Train
Blake and the rest of the team keeping moving toward the front of the car. Although they did pass that girl Feral Ruby was fighting, and chances are Feral Ruby will be after her so it's best to stay away from her. Blake also notices that she snapped a pic of Weiss in disguise. Well... hopefully she doesn't blow the cover.
The five of them went and headed to the next car, only to be confronted by Roman Torchwick. Chances are he still thinks Blake and the team are still members of the White Fang, so...
"Hey, you animals! What are you doing inside the train? Get a Paladin and clear the blockage this train is heading to." Roman ordered.
"Clearing the path isn't enough." Violet stated.
"Oh, smart mouth, huh? Tell me, what is needed."
"The train path inevitably ends at an abandoned train station in Vale, if we don't stop, we'll crash and all the explosives will detonate, killing everyone in the train, including you."
"Well, I haven't thought of that. I only started this train simply to get away from the nostferatu. But it appears to be catching up to me! So, clear the pathway to the train station and stop the train you lousy animals!"
Blake was just angered at Roman whenever he said 'animals'. How does the White Fang put up with him, WHY does the White Fang put up with him? And than the sound of rocks moving out of the way nearby.
"Huh, guess like the non-lazy louts have done the job already. Now hurry up and stop that train!" Roman ordered.
"Remind me, how did you capture the nostferatu again?" Weiss asked.
"You sound familiar, but anyways. We were using Perry as bait to lure her out and has she was feeding off him, BONK! She was unconscious and dragged to the car we used as a prison cell."
Yang looked at Blake furiously, because out of context it does sound kind of... inappropriate in context, so Blake can't blame Yang.
Before they went up... they've noticed a banging noise and a mid-sized mostly armored grimm was knocked into the train car, unconscious.
"Wait, is that a grimm?" Roman asked, confusingly.
The four of them just looked at the grimm confusingly... as it looked familiar...
"Well, don't just stand there, kill it!" Roman ordered.
The grimm body appears to be dissolving... but it wasn't. It was compressing back into it's normal shape, the shape of one unconscious Ruby Rose, with a small hole in her chest. Yang and Weiss gasped when they saw this. Violet did not even flnch. And than the girl she was fighting goes into the car as well, prearing to step on Ruby's neck... only to be stopped by Blake using gambrol shroud to parry the foot.
The girl than used this to remove the mask and hood off of Blake's disguises and pops up next to Roman.
"Ah, Neo. So, these four were really impostors? Explains the disguises. Funny thing is, you had me fooled. Until Neo recognized ol' Kitty Cat here with the disguise, similar to the one she used in the rally." Roman stated.
"What did you do to Ruby!?" Yang yelled.
"Ah simple... uh... hmmm... err... Yoda, is it? Eh, doesn't matter. I didn't do anything to her. Although Neo here did stab her." Roman said, with Neo waving her hand mockingly.
"So, she killed her!?" Weiss objected.
Roman laughed hysterically at the sound of that. And it sounds like he knows about vampires, and that Ruby is one.
"We don't have time for this, if we don't stop this train, we're all going to die." Blake shouted.
"And we don't have much time left, it seems..." Violet stated.
"What do you mean?"
"Look outside, we're approaching the end of the track. So, come up with something."
"Weiss..."
Weiss sighed and used her Earth dust to create a rocky barrier around everyone... except Torchwick and Neo. Guess Weiss didn't feel like saving the lives of the ones that put everyone in this mess, she even put Ruby in the rocky barrier, not knowing she's actually still kicking. Guess she wants to preserve as much of Ruby as she can.
A sound that sounded like the front of the train exploding could be heard... hopefully the rocky barrier can withstand the explosion...
Character Change: Blake Belladonna - Ruby Rose
City of Vale, 9:50 PM, Monday, Abandoned Train station
Ruby regained consciousness and doesn't recognize the surroundings she's in... guess she's been Feral for far longer than anticipated. And from the looks of it... she's not under mountain glenn anymore. She gets up. Although she struggles to. Guess whatever happened in her blood rage really damaged her. She held on her chest... and one of her fingers went... inside of it? She looked down and saw that there's a rainshade shaped hole in her chest. Nothing a pint of blood won't fix... let's just hope she can get back to her team before they see her like...
Well, that can't be good.
Ruby sees her entire team, along with Zwei and the Violet Jasper unconscious. Along with a rocky barrier around a nearly destroyed train car. She went to grab her hood to... wait, where's her hood? That's not good! Anyways, she searches for some tattered cloth to cover up her hole and face. And proceeds to carry the entire unconscious team... although she has to open Yang's eyes to remove her contact lenses. Best if she let Yang sleep this one out... convince her it's all but a dream or something.
And as she was picking up the bodies... she noticed that Violet had Crescent Rose with him. So, she just takes that and puts her baby back where she belongs. And notices Blake has Ruby's hood and bandana. Which is good. Because she couldn't find enough to cover her face. Ruby puts the bodies down went to put her hood and bandana back on. Now she goes back to pick up her entire team and Violet and Zwei out of wherever she is and hopefully find an exit. Ruby has no clue to what happened. Or why she feels so worn out... she checks her scroll for aura... and... it's at 11%! No wonder why everything feels like hell! When she gets back to her dorm, she's going to have to chug through her entire supply of bloodpacks.
It turns out Ruby's at a train station she's never recognized before... it looks like it was built forty years ago. But no matter... she went up to find the way outside. Carrying four bodies and a dog. As much as she wants to, she hopes anyone other than Blake or Violet wakes up.
But that was one hell of a mission. Searching for a White Fang base... getting put under sun lamps... and waking up missing out on literally all of it. Well, atleast there aren't any grimm flooding Vale, in that case... things would have only gotten from bad to worse. But glad whatever happened... a crisis has been averted. Whatever happened to Torchwick and his little friend? Looks like they managed to escape whatever happened here.
"Well... looks like we've made it guys." Ruby spoke to herself, because literally everyone else in unconscious.
Author's Footnote: Well, there's an alternate ending for Volume 2. I originally planned on Ruby not being Feral for this, and using her powers to stop the train in the first place. But I figured this sounded better. So ya... Yang and Weiss knows something about Ruby that they shouldn't know. Neo will also be getting a new weapon soon. Mostly because Ruby unconsciously destroyed the weapon she would have normally. I've also buffed Neo's semblance a bit here to make sense. So, it's less illusions and more shape-changing, so it's more so physical and real instead of being a trick of the senses. So if you have any questions, comments, suggestions, criticisms, etc. Leave them in the reviews and see ya next chapter.